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This book offers a detailed analysis of the key sectors in the Italian economy, with the focus especially on areas in which the economy excels, such as the automatic packaging machinery sector, pharmaceutical production, the food and wine industry, and tourism. The book explains how, contrary to widespread opinion, Italy is one of the world’s most competitive countries in foreign trade, as confirmed by a new index compiled by Fondazione Edison that highlights its strengths and top traded products. The main characteristics of the Italian productive system, which is primarily composed of SMEs, are documented, and a map illustrating the importance of the various industrial districts is proposed, identifying their sectors of specialization, historical roots, and development. The principal steps in Italy’s industrialization over the past 150 years are then outlined, in particular for the manufacturing system – the main driver of Italian exports. In-depth analyses of the mechanical industry and the machinery sector follow. In combining meticulous analysis of statistical data with a historical perspective, this book will appeal to all with an interest in the Italian economy.

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In this book, participation in the arts is analyzed as a substantial contributory factor to European citizenship, and also as a tool for improving individual and societal wellbeing through educational and inclusive policies. It offers an up-to-date overview of ongoing research on the measurement and analysis of, and prospects for, traditional and new forms of cultural engagement in Europe. It describes and assesses available methods and participation in the arts and seeks to determine how and to what extent the various drivers, policies and barriers matter. This publication is the final output of the work done by the members of the EU Project “Assessing effective tools to enhance cultural participation,” which brought together social scientists and cultural practitioners in joint projects, conferences and seminars, to reflect on the current situation and the challenges faced by managers of cultural and arts institutions and cultural policy makers.

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This book presents new theories and international empirical evidence on the state of work and employment around the world. Changes in production systems, economic conditions and regulatory conditions are posing new questions about the growing use by employers of precarious forms of work, the contradictory approaches of governments towards employment and social policy, and the ability of trade unions to improve the distribution of decent employment conditions. Designed as a tribute to the highly influential contributions of Jill Rubery, the book proposes a 'new labour market segmentation approach' for the investigation of issues of job quality, employment inequalities, and precarious work. This approach is distinctive in seeking to place the changing international patterns and experiences of labour market inequalities in the wider context of shifting gender relations, regulatory regimes and production structures.

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Today's world is aging at a great speed, and although increased longevity represents one of the greatest achievements of the last century, the extension of life expectancy does not necessarily correspond to an extension of healthy lives. Aging populations, particularly those with a high percentage of the oldest old, are often burdened with chronic conditions that require extended long-term care. Deciding who provides said care, and in what forms, are key problems that will soon affect a growing number of post-industrial high- and mid-income countries. Caring for a Living contributes to this debate by exploring the organization of long-term care in Italy, a country already in the midst of an eldercare crisis. There, the answer to this problem has taken the shape of home eldercare assistance, an arrangement whereby long-term care services are bought in the market in the form of private and individualized assistance by families sometimes with economic support provided by the State. The providers of these services, commonly known as "badanti" (minders), are, for the most part, im/migrant women coming from different areas of the world. Caring for a Living analyzes the emergence and development of this arrangement and the role that the state, Italian families, and workers themselves play in shaping and in defining it. The author provides timely insights on: the nature of long-term care and its requirements; the specific needs of families facing this issue; the changing role of the neoliberal State; and the ways in which global political and economic processes influence and shape an apparently individually based solution to long-term care. This book is ideal for graduate courses in sociology and anthropology, specifically in courses related to gender and migration, work and women, social inequality, and immigration studies.

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This e-book provides insight into the link between employee health and productivity/performance, with a focus on how individuals, groups, or organizations can intervene in this relationship to improve both well-being and performance-related outcomes. Given the continuous changes that organizations and employees face, such as the aging workforce and continued economic turbulence, it is not surprising that studies are increasingly finding that employee health is related to job conditions. The papers in this e-book emphasize that organizations make a critical difference when it comes to employees' health and well-being. In turn, healthy employees help their organizations to flourish. Such findings are in line with the recent emphasis by both the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations (UN) on the importance of work for individual well-being and the importance of individual well-being for productive and sustainable economic growth (see e.g., ILO, 1985; World Health Organisation, 2007; UN, 2015). Overall, the papers report findings from a cumulative sample of nearly 19,000 workers and perspectives from 68 authors. They suggest that performance cannot be successfully achieved at the cost of health and well-being, and provide various perspectives and tools to guide future research and practice.